Category: news

The return of The Rentals

Has it really been seven years since the last release from The Rentals? Seems so though head Rental Matt Sharp has released some solo material in the interim. While Sharp hinted last year that his band was working on new material, there was very little evidence to support the claim.

Now comes word from The Rentals camp that a brand new 4-song EP featuring the tracks “Last Romantic Day”, “Little Bit of You in Everything”, “Life Without a Brain” and a reworked version of “Sweetness and Tenderness” (from 1995’s Return of the Rentals) will be available on August 14. Not quite as good as a full length, but it will be nice to hear something new from the former Weezer guitarist.

Itching to get back on the road, The Rentals have lined up 2 months worth of tour dates starting in August. Copeland and Goldenboy will join The Rentals on all dates.

Just for fun, check out this interview I did with Sharp back in ’97 shortly after Seven More Minutes was released.

Here’s an old school video (circa 1995) for “Waiting” featuring one time Rental (and current SNL cast member) Maya Rudolph.

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=ot19-TBVpXA[/youtube]

Rooney: This can’t be good, can it?

After spending their early career playing shows with the likes of Weezer, The Strokes, Travis, and The Donnas, it was just announced that Rooney will be hitting the road this summer with … Fergie. HUH? WHAT? FERGIE?

The band will be releasing Calling the World in July and the preview tracks on MySpace sound pretty good but, seriously, Fergie????

Tour dates after the jump.

Continue reading “Rooney: This can’t be good, can it?”

Velvet Revolver / Alice in Chains to tour this summer

MTV reports that two of the biggest names in hard rock – Velvet Revolver and Alice in Chains – will team up for a summer tour with Sparta handling the opening duties. Now, I’m all for bands with dead singer reuniting and bringing a new singer (see: Blind Melon) but I’m not all that excited to see this new version of Alice in Chains. And Velvet Revolver’s first album did nothing for me, so I suspect this is one I’ll be skipping. Tour dates will be announced shortly. In the meantime, check out the brand new Velvet Revolver video for “She Builds Quick Machines” from their forthcoming Liberated album (in stores July 3).

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwJhQnt34m0[/youtube]

Guitar Hero Encore

Found this tidbit over at Blabbermouth.net

Classic tracks from SKID ROW, FASTER PUSSYCAT, POISON and EXTREME are among the newly added covers that will be featured in Activision‘s special 1980s-themed Guitar Hero title, dubbed Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s. The last game in the series to be developed by now-MTV-owned Harmonix will ship for the PlayStation 2 this summer.

Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s tracks so far:

ASIA – “Heat Of The Moment”
BILLY SQUIER – “Lonely Is The Night”
BOW WOW WOW – “I Want Candy”
DIO – “Holy Diver”
EDDIE MONEY – “Shaken”
EXTREME – “Play With Me”
FASTER PUSSYCAT – “Bathroom Wall”
FLOCK OF SEAGULLS – “I Ran” (original recording)
POISON – “Nothing But A Good Time”
QUIET RIOT – “Metal Health”
RATT – “Round And Round”
SKID ROW – “18 And Life”
THE POLICE – “Synchronicity II”
TWISTED SISTER – “I Wanna Rock” (original recording)

As of now, 13 of the 30 songs that will be featured in the game are known, with others to be undoubtedly revealed bit by bit over the coming weeks, according to GameSpot.

Seaweed to reunite

The early stuff didn’t quite do it for me but I put Seaweed’s 1993 release, Four, up there among the best CDs of the ’90s. Just writing about this now is making me dig out ’95’s excellent Spanaway (which saw the band jump from SubPop to Hollywood Records) for a spin. Sadly, the band split up after ’99’s Actions and Indications (Merge Records). A recent blog entry on the band’s MySpace page by guitarist Wade Neal indicates not only a reunion show but work on a new record.

Here’s what Neal says:

Wade Neal here. Well, the reunion show is a go.

All rumors are true. Seaweed is getting it together to do a reunion show at Bumbershoot, Seattle’s greatest music festival. Date/place/time is September 2 at the EMP Sky Church-9:30 PM.

The band is shockingly thrilled to get back together and play in front of our friends and fans once again. All members have returned except they are now playing with long-time friend Jesse Fox of Polecat and Leuko, two excellent NW bands.

Also Jesse and I are working hard on new tracks as well in a shack in South Tacoma–demos should be complete by the end of summer.

The best Seaweed album is yet to come. Tentative title-Small Engine Repair.